Saturday, 31 December 2016

31st December 2016

Dear All,

Kate’s appointment went quite well yesterday in that the operation has been successful and the lymph glands were clean. She now has to have two scans (one for bone density), radiotherapy for 3 weeks and tablets for 5 years. It is quite a treadmill once you are on it, but there are plenty of reasons to be grateful.
We had an enjoyable Christmas at Hove. Esther had been down since the 20th to child mind while Mary-Ann was working. Ben, as usual, cycled but with so much luggage due to Christmas presents that it took him 6 hours – the South Downs can be a challenge! Kate and I were staying in an “Air BnB” nearby which worked well. Albert still does not sleep for long periods partly due to persistent eczema but is usually cheerful in the daytime. He is standing but not quite walking yet. Amélie is showing signs of artistic talent and at Christmas was obsessed with a game on a tablet where she racked up scores higher than anyone else. Of course we did manage one game of “Skinny” but Albert was not an asset when we tried “Upwords”! After church we had a walk along Brighton front which was a bit like Piccadilly Circus!




  
On Boxing Day we had a leg and lung stretcher at Devil’s Dyke in bright clear weather with spectacular views along the Downs.


Devil’s Dyke

We decided to help Ben’s return journey by delivering his luggage to Streatham. The traffic was bad as we approached the M25 and continued into London on the M23 with warnings that there was a 90 minute delay approaching the Dartford Tunnel. We therefore decided to drive home through London with the help of the SatNav which we achieved via the Rotherhithe Tunnel (which was a surprise as we were aiming at the Blackwall Tunnel!)
I walked on Thursday but Kate rested mainly because her leg is playing up. We started at Walkern in Hertfordshire and numbers were down due to weather/distance/Christmas duties but it was frozen solid for most of the route and scenically undulating.


We are off to Norfolk when I have finished this letter staying with Ian & Felicia, who some of you met at my party.
Best wishes for 2017 – 2016 has some questions to answer!


Love


Mike & Kate

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